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what gadgets and gizmos helped you conceive?

Last post 14/02/12 at 23:48 by impis, 21 replies
Post started by greatgatsby on 21/01/12 at 16:41

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  • greatgatsby avatar
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    Posted by: greatgatsby 21/01/2012 at 16:41
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    Joined on 21/11/2011
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    We've just decided to start trying. I'm 37 and well aware that time is not my friend. I tried to conceive years ago in a different relationship, we managed in the end but it took years and lots of testing (nothing found wrong) and I have had 2 very early miscarriages and no successful pregnancies.

    I am delighted that I am going to begin to journey again but am hoping it won't be a long one this time, particularly since we'd like two. Friends have recommended all sorts of gadgetry to help (clearblue monitor, ovulation sticks, pre-seed etc.) I am more than happy to use any of these things but wondered which has more anecdotal evidence of being actually helpful. Last time I used temperature and CM to work out ovulation but it was tedious and I never felt totally sure.

    So what did you use?

  • antoniou avatar
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    Posted by: antoniou 21/01/2012 at 16:51
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    Hi julie,

    My OH and I have been ttc since April 2010 (so about 21 months). In that time I've not even had a hint of a BFP. We have used OPKs, CB monitor, BBT charting, preseed and conceive plus lubricants, drunk grapefruit juice. All to no avail. I've had blood tests and a scan and all have come back fine; OH had a semen analysis done and that was fine too.

    What I'm trying to say is: even if there's nothing 'wrong' with you, and you've used every known gadget you can, there's only a 25% chance each moth of being successful and sometimes, even though you might DTD at the right time, with all the things that have been mentioned, it just doesn't happen.

    Unfortunately, ferility is a lottery and no gadget can guarantee you will get that BFP.

    I'm 3DPO and if still no BFP this cycle, I'll be going back to the GP.

    Good luck with your journey.
  • greatgatsby avatar
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    Posted by: greatgatsby 21/01/2012 at 17:16
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    I'm sorry you've not been lucky so far Antoniou :-( I know how hard it is. It took me three years first time round so I do really know, it's horrible. I've not heard of drinking grapefruit juice though... Of course I know that nothing can guarantee anything, I know that more than most. You WILL get there. It took my sister three years too. She was at the end of her tether when she got pregnant at long last and now I have a gorgeous nephew. Keep your chin up. x
  • MisterFlibble avatar
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    Posted by: MisterFlibble 21/01/2012 at 20:01
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    Temping a bit - that one miscarried, then temping again light-touch just to determine my cycles were screwed up post-miscarriages, that lots weren't ovulatory cycles anymore -and then, sorry for the cliche here, a mixture of giving up and grieving for the idea of having a child - and a "sod it - by X date I WILL be pregnant or have the baby" attitude and virtually chaining hubby to the bed!

    Think to be honest it was a combination of the feeling of control from the temp charting, and the fact it narrowed things down to cut down the amount of incessant bonking (years of bonking every 2 days gets really really monotonous and cuts your lovelife down to "Ok whip it out and get it up quick - need to write the shopping list and get to Tescos" levels).

  • JenCC avatar
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    Posted by: JenCC 21/01/2012 at 21:46
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    Hi Julieacorn,

     I'm 20weeks pregnant and was trying for 18months. I used ovulation sticks...but the cheapest ones I could find from China on ebay, they are the same sensitivity as clearblue but a fraction of the price. I also kept an ovulation/cycle record on an ovulation app on my phone. Although the pressure did get to me and OH and it was when we stopped trying that we hit gold. Keep the faith and know that 2 years is deemed a normal amount of time, although it certainly doesnt feel like it.

    All the best Jen

  • Andi H avatar
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    Posted by: Andi H 22/01/2012 at 12:41
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    I used the really cheap ov sticks from ebay and they always worked. Also charted on fertilityfriend.com but this only confirms you have ovulated after the event! I was lucky that I always got a massive temperature dip on the day of ovulation so after 4 mths of trying post mmc we DTD on ov day and I am now 17wks preg. No lube is meant to be best but if we needed it we used preseed as normal stuff is meant to kill off sperm

    I looked back at my charts from my toddler and the cycle we conceived him we also DTD on ov day. Don't know if this made a difference for us because OH's SA showed 50% quantity and 50% motility so maybe they got to where they needed to be before giving up as they may have done when we DTD on pre ov days.  I was 36 when we conceived our toddler and 38 this time, soon to be 39 eeek!

    Hope to read about a happy ending for you soon x
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    Posted by: LittleMissCurious 22/01/2012 at 12:48
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    For me, it took 2 years trying by ourselves and then 60+ self-administed injections, countless hormone tablets & capsules, a fertility consultant, embryologists and ICSI treatment....  Quite a lot of gadgets and gizmos....!
  • brettgirl2 avatar
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    Posted by: brettgirl2 22/01/2012 at 15:20
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    I used cb fertility monitor. It made me feel a lot more in control and with slightly irregular cycles helped me.make sense of it all. Otherwise I never knew when.AF was due and it drove me mad. Good luck :-)
  • greatgatsby avatar
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    Posted by: greatgatsby 22/01/2012 at 17:29
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    I have CB monitor which I bought years ago when trying first time round but I never got to use it in the end. I have bought 20 sticks to use with it and I thought I'd give it a go the first month or two until I know roughly when I'm ovulating and then use cheapy sticks for subsequent months. If a test tells you that you are ovulating does that mean you have to do it now as tomorrow will be too late?! Or does it detect when the time is near?
  • antoniou avatar
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    Posted by: antoniou 22/01/2012 at 17:49
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    The OPKs detect that you are about to OV and can therefore dtd any time during the next 48 hrs. As I'm taking part in a fertility study, I go for internal scans once I get a positive OPK. On some occasions, ov is detected on that day, but on others (this cycle for example) I didn't ov until 3 days later. HTH.
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